Pantha Du Prince And The Bell Laboratory – 'Elements of Light' review

Pantha Du Prince And The Bell Laboratory – 'Elements of Light'

Loving a record dominated by the sound of bells won’t make you Pavlov’s dog, we promise. Bells are central to this German maverick’s fourth album, with its many chimes and dongs provided by a three-tonne carillon usually found in a bell tower. It may look like an unnecessary novelty on paper, yet what makes the album so deserving of your ears is Pantha Du Prince’s skill as a delicate techno producer more focused on mood than movement. While he crafts melodies that range from surging joy to funereal melancholy, it’s the faint hints of electronic drums and bass that both tether ‘Elements of Life’ to the twenty-first century and give it a dreamy driving force, best heard in a sleepy state on a long train journey.

If you’re even slightly excited that Kraftwerk are playing at the Tate soon, this more modern take on techno is a must – cut from the same cloth, yet with bells on.